Uncategorized Archives - Page 11 of 14

08/01/2017 Lithuania

LITHUANIA

Lithuania is one of the three Baltic states, it is situated along the south eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, to the east of Sweden and Denmark. It is bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and Kaliningrad Oblast (a Russian exclave) to the southwest. Lithuania has an estimated population of 2.8 million people and its capital and largest city is Vilnius.

Tuesday 1st August – Domantai, Lithuania.

(Campsite tonight: Parking Domantai – Hill of Crosses)

Left Riga, Latvia this morning.

Soon we reached the Lithuanian border and were asked to show our passports. No further checks were made and the guard wished us a good journey.

Arrived at the Hill of Crosses, Domantai and again the crowds were massive in this special holy place. At the entrance there were several stalls selling crosses in every shape and size and people were eagerly buying them and having names engraved on them.

One small section of the Hill of Crosses

One of Lithuania’s most awe inspiring sights. Quite a solemn walk towards the hill where there were over 100,000 crosses from metres high to inches high. The majority being memorial pieces for lost loved ones. Steps led the way up the middle of the hill and crosses and statues and rosary beads took up every available space – tons of crosses now buried deeply and overtaken by new ones on top. The sounds of the thousands of crosses tinkling in the breeze is quite eerie.

My navigator at the Hill of Crosses (she is the one with the handbag)

The parking area was a designated spot for motorhome overnight parking so along with several others we stayed for the night. We were surrounded by fields of crops which was just so peaceful and green. Not sure what was growing but it looked very healthy.

Woke up in the middle of the night by flashes of lightning and thunder and then massive wind which rocked poor Ziggy. Then the rain and hail started and we spent a couple of nervous hours waiting for it to stop. Back to sleep again and hoped we had no damage.

Wed 2nd – Thurs 3rd August 2017 – from Hill of Crosses to Kaunas to Vilnius

(Campsite for tonight: – Parking Vilnius)

Left Hill of Crosses.

Checked everything and all was okay after last nights storm – thank goodness.

The skies were still overcast with a drizzle of rain so happily we moved on.

Rain became quite heavy and again lightning and thunder all around us. Decided to pull over and have a cuppa at a motel site until the weather cleared again.

Kaunas

We arrived in Kaunas and stopped at the Museum of the 9th Fort about 7kms north of the town. This museum comprises an old WWI era fort and bunker like church of the damned.

In excess of 50,000 were mass murdered and buried here

Also at this location, a carved stone monument which stands about 15 storeys high is perched high on the hill and overlooks Kaunas. Engraved faces and fists stand at the top of stone pedestals of the monument and huge plaques on the ground tell of the gruesome atrocities of the Nazis and of the thousands upon thousands of bodies killed by the Nazis and buried here – 50,000 bodies are buried here in a mass grave.

Vilnius

Our timing for arrival in this huge city Vilnius was not desirable (5pm) and one wrong turn saw our sat nav take Ziggy through the narrowest streets, through car parks and sometimes with only an inch or two between us and the cars double and tripled parked on both sides of a narrow street. There does not seem to be any rules about parking in these Eastern European countries – wherever and whichever way you are facing is where you park – be it on a corner, half a car on the footpath – doesn’t seem to matter.

My navigator gave a wrong call and took us right bang smack into a massive traffic jam and with streets merging every 50 or so metres, we did not move more than a few inches in half an hour. My driver was very calm and this navigator remained very quiet and happy to make no further calls and allowed sat nav to give directions.

Arrived at Parking Vilnius just before 6pm which is only a couple of blocks from the start of Old Town. It caters for several motorhomes, buses and cars and at a cost of €6 per night was exceptional value as it so central.

After a soothing and nerve calming drink, we headed into Old Town to have some dinner. Again the streets were alive with tourists and every cafe with outdoor eating was already packed with queues waiting to get good seats where you could watch the passing crowds. We found a cafe claiming to have the best Lithuanian food so stood in the queue waiting our turn to nab a good seat.

Didn’t take long and soon we were presented with potato and bacon pancakes and stuffed potato dumplings. Not good for the waistline and very heavy but intended to walk it off before heading home. Spent the next two hours walking through the streets and getting our bearings for tomorrow.

A surprisingly quiet night given how close we were to everything. Most of the cars were gone when we came back leaving about 6 motorhomes and a couple of buses who had dropped off their tourists at hotels and parked here overnight.

We spent the whole day walking around Old Town which is spread over several hectares and I believe has 27 museums and 26 cathedrals.

View of Vilnius New Town from the Old Fort

Buskers were entertaining in some of the main streets, all hoping to get a share of the tourists hard earned dollars. Some were absolutely amazing. We again had to have lunch and chose another cafe and tried some more local food – this time a lighter meal for both of us. Along came a young boy, looked about 8 years carrying a piano accordion and a chair. He perched on the footpath between a few of the restaurants and with a massive smile on his face, began playing the piano accordion which looked so huge on his small frame. He swayed back and forth, tapping his feet to the tune. He made big bucks in the hour we were there – heaps more than the other buskers and really played the crowd (particularly the women) with his smile.

On the border of Old Town, we found the botanical gardens which followed the river. The gardens, flowers and fountains were just so inviting so we sat and watched the endless stream of mothers (and grandmothers) taking babies for a stroll.

Friday 4th August – Vilnius to Merkine, Lithuania

(Campsite for tonight: Parking Memel)

Left Vilnius

Travelled from the city back into the countryside. Lots more farmland now and richer soil and crops growing everywhere.

Merkine

We are heading back to Poland now and there is only a small gap to get from Lithuania to Poland without going into Belarus or Russia so we headed south west to a really beautiful little town called Merkine.

The campsite is beneath a bridge and on the river and only has a couple of dedicated spots for motorhomes and is a free camp. There is a small sandy beach and lots of lovely green grass so was popular with the locals during the day.

As usual we put on our walking shoes and headed into town hopefully to get a coffee. We took the long way round through the natural park with streams and little rickety bridges crossing them and then to THE HILL – a challenge with 98 steps up and when we got to the top, the same number back down – ugh!! Don’t think we will come back this way. Closer to town, we passed cottages, each with fruit trees (mostly green and red apples). So many trees with fruit all over the ground – thought about picking up some for some stewed Apple – but didn’t have anything to carry them back with.

No coffee shops (or any cafe of any kind in town) so bought an ice cream (similar to a Magnum) for around $1.50 and headed back.

There was some activity under the bridge when we got back. There was quite a large boat in the water and a group of people were trying to get the boat onto a trailer. They struggled for some time and managed to not only get the trailer stuck in the mud but the car also now had its back wheels stuck. There was no concrete ramp so had no idea why they even tried to get the boat out here – only grass leading into the water and then mud- recipe for disaster.

Rob took his levelling ramps down and offered his help. Long story, but it took us and six other adults a couple of hours with a lot of rocks and sand and all of us assisting with ropes to get them out of trouble.

The families were Polish and we really enjoyed the couple of hours we spent helping them (they were just delightful). The boat owner invited us to visit him at his camping place in Poland and we exchanged contact information.

07/30/2017 Riga Latvia

Sunday 30th July – Monday 31st July – Riga, Latvia (Riverside Camping)

Rīga is the capital and the largest city in Latvia. With 639,630 inhabitants Riga is the largest city in the Baltic states and home to one third of Latvia’s population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga, at the mouth of the Daugava. Riga’s territory covers 307.17 square kilometres.

Roadworks, roadworks and more roadworks. We crept along or should we say, rattled along and felt every bump for what seemed a lifetime. The cutlery in the drawer danced about and porcelain cups kept in tune. Couldn’t believe nothing broke.

The Sat Nav spat the dummy in the middle of town and we seemed to go round and round in a circle. Finally gave up on the sat nav in frustration and used the off line map in our iPad. Finally happy to arrive at our destination, settled in at the marina and enjoyed a restful afternoon with dinner under the awning overlooking the river. Very warm now so have put away our winter gear – hopefully.

Caught a taxi to Old Town (taxi recommended by manager here) as the buses only run hourly and cost 2€ each and taxi 6€. Arrived at Freedom Monument and spent the rest of the day enjoying this fantastic city. Old Town runs for so many blocks it took hours to roam about and try to see everything. Most of everything here was bombed to the ground during WW2 and has been restored to original specs. This is pretty much the same story at most towns throughout our travels. So many beautiful churches and cathedrals, museums at nearly every corner and buildings with so much character.

The markets are situated on the river side of the city and consist of 5 massive hangars described as Zeppelin Hangars. One specifically for deli items such as every conceivable sausage you could want, cheeses, breads, pickled,this and that and jars of unknown goodies. One was dedicated to all sorts of meats and chickens another for fish and shellfish (even the dreaded smoked fish). In between there were literally hundreds of stalls selling fresh fruit and vegetables. Some we did not recognise at all. Berries of all kinds – strawberries €2 per kilo – blueberries €2 per kilo – tomatoes €1 per kilo. Just wish we had our backpacks with us as we would have filled them to the brim. Flowers galore – so colourful and the scents intoxicating. Clothes, bags, shoes everything you could want was for sale here – and at just the right price. Kept the wallet under lock and key- so many temptations.

After 5 hours of sheer pleasure and amazement at the wonders of this city, this little person had had enough. The skies had blackened as we left the markets and it began to rain. We took shelter in a little bar and enjoyed some local beers while waiting for it to clear. Took off again for a short while and then gave up after the rain continued and hailed the taxi for home.

Our Riga view from Ziggy for 3 days and 2 nights

07/27/2017 Otepaa Estonia

Thursday 27th July 2017 – Otepaa vald, Estonia (Puhajarve Manor)

Took photos of “the red rock” on the lakefront at Kalleste – a local tourist attraction and the cemetery. Like in Poland, the Estonian cemeteries are adorned with flowers and lanterns and exquisite headstones and the setting in this one was lakefront amongst beautiful trees and gardens – really peaceful and beautiful. Many of the unit blocks throughout the town were in bad repair and most of the people here only speak Russian.

We travelled to Alatskivi to find a few places on the tourist map. We passed by many roadside caravans selling local produce particularly onions. The Lake Peipus region is renowned for its famous onions and they even have a road called “Onion Road” where you can buy all sorts of onions by the bag full if you want. Many also sell smoked fish – gave that a miss big time – think we are both over fish for a while.

Nearby, in a little village called Nina we found some really interesting old buildings going back centuries and amongst these a fabulous and secluded waterfront resort. The cemetery here was one of the prettiest and most colourful we have seen. Ziggy certainly created some interest here, as I am sure most people here would not have seen a motorhome particularly with GB plates. We were quite relieved to see Ziggy still there waiting for us on our return.

Typical guard tower from the Soviet days in Nina

Friday 28^th July 2017 Tartu Estonia

Next on to Tartu, Estonia’s second largest city. We parked at the top end of town and soon found the KGB Cells Museum. It is housed in the infamous “Grey House” which was the regional KGB headquarters in the 1940’s and 50’s. Apart from the lock-ups themselves, the museum has extensive exhibits on deportations, life in the gulags and Estonian resistance movements.

Next a 15 minute walk downtown to Old Town. If you have not already guessed, we are really interested and intrigued by these magic places and hunt them out in each city. The focal point here is the Town Hall Square. This is the marketplace and a cultural gathering point of Tartu and features the Kissing Students fountain. Again an abundance of churches, museums, open air restaurants and pubs and central seating set amongst colourful flower beds. The narrow streets also have strings of fairy lights everywhere which in the evening and in winter would be a fairyland.

Interesting way to get a beer in Tartu – a mobile tanker

It began to rain (we have had fabulous weather in Estonia so far) so we made a dash up the hill and then to find a camp for the night.

We had planned to stay longer in Tartu but there is only one registered camp stop here in the Port of Tartu area but it did not take long for us to decide not to stay and move on.

We found an unbelievable camp site in a place called Otepaa, south west of Tartu. They have 10 dedicated motorhome spots and six of these with electricity. Only one other motorhome here. Set in the grounds of a health and spa resort with an indoor pool, gymnasium, sauna, tennis courts and even a ten pin bowling centre with four lanes. The manicured lawns and trees stretch as far as you can see with bike trails heading in every direction around a small lake. Wow- double wow- and we can use any of the facilities, have a massage, visit the doctor all for a pittance.

We stayed at the resort for 3 days and 2 nights

It was late when we arrived, so we checked out the resort ready for use tomorrow and settled in for the night – it is almost dark at night now.

Only 3 motorhomes here overnight but at 9am the car park was filling quickly with families heading for the beach (pebbles only) but beautiful grassy areas next to the pebbles were quickly snapped up.

Off came the bikes and off we ventured to explore. My power pack always comes with me but my driver opts to go manpower only. I chuckled when we hit the first really big hill as I turned on the power assist and watched my best friend struggle up. Last view as I got to the top was his truly walking his bike up (he nearly made it to the top). Credit where credit is due to his truly – I cheated. We continued on for some time and then headed back for lunch and a well deserved break.

Enjoyed the afternoon on the beautiful green lawns and people watched until late afternoon. Fully refreshed, set off again on our bikes – both of us with our power packs. The bike tracks went on forever and so did we. First time we have had the opportunity for a long time to travel so far on our bikes – was fantastic.

Had dinner (and sweets) at the Resorts Cafe and listened to some live music (couldn’t understand a word) but the beat was great.

Saturday 29th July – Cesis, Latvia

Good news – BIG WIN!!! – over six weeks ago, the day we arrived in Norway in a beautiful little town called Son, we parked in a “free for 24 hour parking zone” and on return from a long walk found an infringement notice flapping on our wipers to the tune of $AUD100. We wrote to the local council and complained. We also lodged a complaint with the parking company Europark. There was no logical reason for the ticket so stuck to our guns on this one. We received an official notice from Europark advising that the ticket was cancelled but gave no reason.

Left our resort spa reluctantly. Such a beautiful place, free and included electricity at no cost. Hard to believe but these places do exist.

We had just finished our last drop of rum the night before and needed to find a shop to restock. We were out in the country and did not expect to get to a reasonably large town for some time. We passed by a sign to an Alko 1000 which was just a little out of our way so headed towards the small town to find it. Don’t you just love the name Alko – very appropriate!! The shop was mega huge and cars and buses were lined up everywhere. Like a small city in the middle of nowhere.

We parked Ziggy in the bus zone (there was no room in the car park) and fought our way through the crowds to get through the front door – could not believe what we saw. People had trolleys stacked and overflowing with beer and spirits- some people had two trolleys. Couldn’t believe what we were seeing so asked a shop assistant why this shop was so busy. Unbeknown to us, we had crossed the border into Latvia and these were Estonians stocking up across the border at much cheaper prices.

Our last bottle of Captain Morgans cost us around €24 for a 700ml bottle. Here it was €14 for a litre(that’s around $20). We bought 3!!! Beer was also €0.70 per 500ml which is around $1.00 a bottle. Not much difference in the cost of wine though. Evidently Latvia is heaps cheaper than Estonia and Lithuania but not as cheap as Poland.

The small town of Cesis is in the centre of Gauja National Park and is just delightful. We parked in the middle of town only 500 metres from their Old Town and Cesis Castle. Couldn’t believe the number of tourists at the Castle, in this small town in the middle of nowhere – several buses had just arrived and the queues to see the castle was a mile long. Stunning grounds of manicured lawns, picturesque gardens and fountains formed a magic backdrop to the castle.

Unusual roundabout in Cesis with beautiful flower arrangements

Old Town is only very small and many of the buildings were in the early stages of restoration – scaffolding hiding some of the beautiful features of the old buildings. The Old Town Main Street was totally ripped up, no doubt to lay cobblestones at some stage soon to add more appeal to the streetscape. Quaint shops lined this street, no doubt unhappy right now, but once completed, this street will be the focal point of Old Town.

Cesis old town mainstreet – towns seem to be getting the idea that old towns are a gold mine from tourism

We stopped at a pizza restaurant just on the corner of Main Street. We have found most staff in touristy places speak English. The waitress arrived and spoke to us in a language I couldn’t understand. I asked her if she spoke English and she smiled and said “I am speaking English”. We both laughed and ordered a 45cm pizza and a couple of beers. The pizza arrived and it was humungous – we couldn’t possibly get through it. A Doggy bag and an hour later, we headed back. So pleased that the darkness of night has returned – have really missed it,

My navigator at the Pizza Restaurant in old town

07/23/2017 Tallinn Estonia

Saturday 22nd, Sunday 23rd July – Tallinn, Estonia

As the Helsinki Zoo car park fills up very quickly we opted to leave around 9.30 am so that we would not get parked in. Car parks are quite narrow here with not a lot of room to manoeuvre if cars are parked opposite. We headed straight to the Eckero Cruise terminal. The MS Finnlandia was not set to sail until 3.15 pm however check in was requested for 2 hours earlier. Quite relaxing sitting at the terminal watching other ships loading in the comfort of our 5 star accommodation and soon it was our turn to join the line.

Leaving Helsinki with Ziggy on the MS Finnlandia

All the car ferry/ships are massive and set up like other cruise ships with shops, casinos in every spare corner and a multitude of choices of places to eat and drink. Even had on board entertainment though the trip was just over two hours. We sat on the top deck in the sun overlooking the sea and took advantage of the wifi to do some more work on our blog. A perfect sunny day with little or no wind so was just wonderful.

Docked around 5.30pm and soon were settled into our overnight camp at the Port of Tallinn – just around the corner. The location, though a mixed parking area only, was perfectly situated right beside the heart of the city – only a 5-10 minute walk to Central and Old Town.

Passengers for the cruise ships came and went and the area was alive. We headed off on foot to do some preliminary exploring and found a magic spot in the Rotermann Quarter to have dinner. Situated next to Old Town it is an old factory complex turned into a commercial centre with avant-garde architecture. The little stone walkways threading through narrow alleys with restaurants on either side. Fairy lights across the cobblestone alleys would be spectacular (if we had night but it is still light right up to midnight).

Rotermann Quarter – a mix of the old and the new

We returned to Ziggy at around 8.30 pm really tired after hours of walking and decided to move Ziggy to another position to get better internet reception. We had not even had time to turn the engine off when we were approached by a lady (another Aussie) who had seen the Aussie flag on Ziggy. After a few minutes Allison and hubby Alan invited us to have a wine with them in their motorhome a few doors up. We sat and talked and talked and talked until after 1 am (we had no idea it was that late). They have been travelling in Europe for 7 years and have no immediate plans for returning home any time soon. They were not leaving for Finland until Monday so we made plans to meet again Sunday afternoon for a few more wines and dinner somewhere in Old Town.

We toured for nearly 5 months before seeing any Aussies in a motorhome and then we saw 2 couples in 2 days – Phil and Mads in Helsinki who have been touring Europe for 5 years and now Allison and Alan who have been touring Europe for seven years – made us feel like newbies.

Bright and early, we set off for Old Town – a real Jewel. Twisting cobblestone lanes and iron street lamps. Gothic spires and medieval markets. This enclosed neighbourhood of colourful, gabled houses, half hidden courtyards and grandiose churches is Tallinn’s greatest attraction.

It took us literally hours to walk up and down the narrow courtyards and through the multitude of shops and museums and churches, at times stopping to listen to the lone guitarist or three piece orchestra. The restaurants in market square packed with tourists who sat people watching as vendors in traditional and medieval costumes sold their wares from the markets. Ŵe were just one of those tourists who did exactly the same. The area is massive and covers several blocks – by far the largest we have seen so far. So many beautiful old buildings.

We left Old Town and passed through some beautiful flower markets. The perfumes and colours were astonishing. We walked through parks and gardens and street after street of restaurants and finally back to the Port for a well deserved rest before our reciprocal with Allison and Alan which no doubt would linger longer again.

Tallinn Old Town Busker – great sound – strange instrument

We started at our house at around 5pm and after about 3 bottles of wine and some excellent conversation and much laughter, headed back to Old Town for dinner. Found a great little restaurant (so many to choose from) and finally got kicked out when the restaurant closed.

Monday 24th July – Lahemaa National Park, Estonia (Oandu Village)

Waved our goodbyes with the promise to keep in touch with Allison and Alan – they headed to Finland on the ferry we came across on and we continued our journey to eastern Estonia.

The supermarket at the port housed one of the biggest bottle shops we have seen anywhere and judging by the prices, we were back to the land of plenty at not much cost. The supermarket (while only small) displayed some interesting varieties of Estonian foods and prices were back to what we would call better than home (but not as good as Poland).

We looked for the nearest Lidl to stock up after Scandinavia but it appears from the web there are none as yet in Estonia but they have plans to open some soon – what a disappointment.

Tallinn itself is very modern but once out of town, the Soviet influences took over quickly. Lots of old grey buildings in many cases dilapidated and unit complexes three to five storeys high, rectangular with small windows and no balconies, spread out over whole blocks took over the landscape. Just outside of Tallinn we were pulled up (along with every other car on a two lane highway) and breathalysed. Zero was the result and the policeman wished us a happy journey. There would have been at least 30-40 police and cars used for this operation.

We travelled through the countryside with only very small towns with little or no town centres. Only a short journey today and the first of many after the massive miles we travelled in Scandinavia.

What a joy this campsite was. Perched among the forest trees, enough room for about 10 motorhomes and a patch of grass beyond the fence that would comfortably take 20-30 tents. Provided were huts with benches and tables alongside BBQ pits and large community fire places – and believe it or not – they had a hut, brim full of timber for anyone to use. Had planned to do a walking trail this afternoon, but instead, claimed the best spot and set about getting the fireplace stocked with timber and kindling ready for what we classify as “our ultimate evening” of good food cooked on the fire, a blazing fire under the stars (though there were none) and our iPod playing our favourite music and of course a beverage or two.

My Navigator – exactly where she likes to be – in the bush with an open fire

Strangely, the area filled with campers coming in cars and even on bicycles with tents who had the same idea as we did. It was lovely to see families coming together and enjoying this great place. Reminded us so much of when we did this with our kids. We were the only motorhome again.

Tuesday 26th July – Ida-virumaa, Estonia (Valaste Kula)

We had such a wonderful afternoon and evening the day before, but did not do what we had set out to do by coming to this national park – though got to say the distraction was just wonderful.

The Village is about 100 metres away and offers for viewing, traditional old buildings with exhibits spread around tranquil ponds. Being a national park it also provided details on the various walks around the park and the animals and plant life that thrive in these forests. We took our backpacks and water and headed off on the beaver trail in the hope of sighting some of these in their natural habitat at the edge of streams. Unfortunately, we had a group of tourists with dogs that were in front of us, so any chance of seeing any of these shy creatures was doomed. Not sure if they allow dogs in national parks here – but would not be surprised as man’s best friend seems to be allowed absolutely everywhere over here. The walk was just great despite the noisy group.

We have not found many spots to wild camp here so our next destination was more so to do some washing and to give the batteries a deep charge by connecting to power. Think we have only been connected to power at 2 or 3 places in over 4.5 months. Ziggy’s solar panels and batteries have been more than ample.

Again at Valasta Kula we are the only motorhome here though they can take 6. The camp is adjacent to a small restaurant and the lady here said that this northern part of Estonia is not popular and most people prefer the south. We are right on the Gulf of Finland with magnificent views over the ocean and right across the road from some waterfalls, though these were not very spectacular

Wednesday 27th July – Kallaste, Estonia (Hostel Lagoon)

Kallaste is a seaside village at beginning of Tartu County. Only very small with a population of no more than 100 or so people. Our campsite is on the lake front – Lake Peipsi and the only thing between us and Russia. There are a number of guests who were out all day in the sunshine and on the beach. Many looking a dark shade of crimson by day’s end. The manager here gave us a town map and some history and we set off for a long walk through town and then along the bluff and beach and then back to town to visit the local fisherman (recommended by the manager) who was a legend and master of cooking smoked fish.

The Soviet influence still very real here in the eastern countries

We dropped in and he took us around the back and showed us how it was done. The fish did not look very appetising and not being a lover of fish, reluctantly bought a full smoked bream with his recommendation and a bottle of picked gherkins to have with it. His suggestion (he only spoke Russian so was a bit hard to understand 😳) was to have the fish with bread and gerkins. Think we were doomed from the beginning as yours truly is not a lover of fish and his truly does not like gherkins. Long story short, first mouthful was good until his truly nearly choked on a small bone and we discovered the big fish was full of very small bones. Canned the fish, ate the gherkins and the slice of bread already buttered and then waited an hour or so before having a chicken (with no bones) for dinner.

07/17/2017 Varkaus Finland

Monday 17th July – Varkaus, Finland

Finland is made up of over 70% forests and has over 1000 lakes so the countryside does not change much. The population is just over 5 million and most of the population live in the south.

They do not cater well for travellers with only one registered service point in the whole country that provides water and black and grey water disposal areas. 95% of the roadside parking areas do not have WC’s. There are some (but not many) camping places and these are very expensive to stay at.

We have been very creative in finding water and have found marinas and cemeteries and sometimes churches are a good chance.

Today again was a typical day being overcast and cloudy and rain along the way and not a lot of interesting or different scenery, though the forests are very lush and green.

It is quite funny seeing roadside signs saying beware of elk where at home they are kangaroos. We have seen so many elk and reindeer along the roadside grazing and they love running along the roads and won’t get off even when you beep the horn. It is quite funny to watch a herd of reindeer waddle along in front of you on a two lane highway and making no effort to get off – we have sometimes followed them for half a km or so.

We are back to the wild flowers on both sides of the road – purple, pink and white. They look like a smaller version of our “stocks” back home. Very colourful and with these comes the feeling that we have almost caught up to summer again in Scandanavia. The sun is now setting below the horizon but the sky still retains some light for most of the night. We are back to short sleeves and shorts for a short time during the day but nights are still around the 15 degrees.

We turned off just before the town of Varkaus as we could not find anywhere suitable and quiet along the highway. Saw a sign to a boat ramp so headed that way and found a fantastic spot right on the waterfront. Space for Ziggy alone with no room for anyone else – what a shame 🙂

We watched as some locals came and went in their fishing boats or walked their dogs but from 5pm all was quiet – just the fish and the birds and us to enjoy this beautiful setting.

Tuesday 18th July , Heinola, Finland

Another rare sunny day so out our aim today was to get as close to Helsinki as possible so we could arrive there at a reasonable hour the next day.

It has been so refreshing in Finland to travel without road tolls and ferries which made the cost in Norway very expensive.

The speed allowed in some places on the motorway was 120kms per hour and the roads were excellent but with that came lots of speed cameras along the road. Each time the speed was reduced to 80 in a built up area there was a speed camera there to capture the driver who wasn’t paying attention.

Again no luck with finding an easy spot for the night. We Turned off at Heinola which left us just over a 100kms to Helsinki.

We parked at the jetty next to a waterfront cafe and decided to have lunch there. Enjoyed lunch and a pint and watched the boats and people go by. The cafe sold ice creams and it was amazing to see how many different ways people and kids devour ice creams.

Heinola – our lunch time and overnight spot and yes some sun!!!

We drove around the town looking for the perfect spot. What a pretty town – avenues lined with trees and neat little and large homes. This town is the last one on the map that is lake front. Lots of marinas and waterfront but nothing suitable.

We found a spot right next to where we had lunch with unrestricted parking and then walked into town. Spent a couple of hours walking and viewing the wares in the marketplace before heading back for the night.

Was not the quietest spot as we had a couple of noisy cars whose drivers thought they were rally drivers and did some burnouts on the street nearby.

We have found that people here come out at all times of the night as it never gets dark. Can imagine we would be the same after having a couple of months of no daylight.

Wednesday 19th – Friday 21st July – Helsinki, Finland

There is a dedicated motorhome spot right on the harbour at Helsinki Zoo. When we arrived the attendant told us the spots were all full so we moved on and decided to come back late afternoon when the zoo was closing. Found a spot nearby and parked and did some research on sights to see in Helsinki and Estonia.

Returned at 5pm and had our pick of the 10 motorhome spots available.

Put on our walking shoes and headed up to the zoo which closed at 6pm. There were 3 tiers of parking and then overflow parking at a sports centre on the tennis courts next door. Being holiday season, the carpark was full and we passed streams of people leaving the zoo. The zoo is actually on an island with a bridge across to it. For the adventurous, there is a high wire zip line and jungle above ground activity park just before the zoo. Set high above the ground, you go from tree to tree doing various activities. Might give that one a miss but really well done and lots of people swinging and zipping above us through the trees.

The No 16 bus is right at the entrance to the car park and runs every 20 minutes straight into the centre of Helsinki to Central Station. There is also a ferry that runs from the Zoo into Market Square.

Again an overcast day we took a backpack each with rain gear, water, iPads and eager with anticipation of what lay ahead for the day, bought a 24 hour ticket for €9 and headed into town. The bus driver was excellent and dropped us off at the Tourist Office located inside Central Station. Best tourist office we have been to. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by a tourist officer who took us step by step on our map of “must sees” in Helsinki. Unbelievably helpful and definitely a big tick for Helsinki. She also gave us a book of Discount Coupons each which gave us free entry into various attractions and of course discounts on tours and food etc.

Our bus ticket also included a free public ferry ride to Soumenlinna Island – our first destination for the day.

A really great 20 minute ferry ride in the harbour took us past several small one house islands. Very extravagant, your own private island. Huge ferries in the harbour ready to take man and car to lots of different countries – one which will take us to Tallinn, Estonia in a few days time.

We arrived at the Sea Fortress on Soumenlinna – construction began in the 18th century and with the other 100+ people on this ferry toured the island and then spent several hours going through museums and submarines, arts and crafts etc. the fortifications and old garrison buildings have been restored and converted into residential properties, studios and offices restaurants and museums. Tickets in our voucher books gave us free entry into some of these.

It started to rain, so decided to go back to Market square and explore the many other attractions in town. As the ferry docked at Market Square, the people waiting to board were back as far as you could see – heaps more than were on our ferry two hours earlier.

Market Square was crowded to capacity with the many eating halls unable to cope with the crowds. It was also raining and people were clambering to get under shelter. Stalls selling food, souvenirs and fresh berries of all kinds covered the massive square which was also the terminal for the many sightseeing ferries and boats departing to their respective destinations.

We had thought of picking up some Finnish delights at Market Square but opted to get away from the tourists and headed into a quieter area where we had lunch and waited for the rain to clear.

Next off to Helsinki Cathedral and Senate Square. The all white cathedral is an icon and stands high above the town. Fifty steps up from Senate Square to the cathedral then the view over Senate Square and town was spectacular. The outside of building is stunning but inside it is quite bare except for the cathedral organ which was the only impressive part.

The city was a buzz with tourists and whilst it does not have an Old Town, many of the buildings were unique.

Krys taking in a bit of Finnish street culture

Uspenski Cathedral is another city landmark – a massive red building with stunning gold domes on each tower. Again set high on a hill with so many steps, we lost count.

The streets were lined with cafes and restaurants and a shopping area that was was specifically for the rich and famous – designer labels in every shopfront. Only customers we saw were Asian and they had several bags each.

We sat in an open air concert area where bands played for the diners in the several tree lined cafes. A truly very busy city centre.

We arrived back at Ziggy around 5pm thoroughly exhausted but on a high from such a great day.

Surprise, surprise – right beside Ziggy was another motorhome with Australian stickers all over it – first we had seen in over four and a half months. Phil and Mads were from the Northern Territory and had been travelling overseas over a period of 5 years – though they often leave their motorhome in Holland and head back home for a few months to catch up with kids and grandkids and friends and then head back here to resume their journey.

Phil and Mads purpose built 4WD 450 litres diesel and 300 litres water

We sat on the dock of Helsinki bay and told stories for hours. So great to hear an Aussie voice again and we really enjoyed their company. They were heading north to Iceland in the morning and it was sad we could not spend more time as they had a wealth of experience to share with us.

Following morning, it was a beautiful sunny day and after breakfast we bid Phil and Mads goodbye and then sat and booked our passage to Estonia. We could not get on a ferry today without having to see the bank manager first and the earliest we could get a reasonably priced ticket was tomorrow departing at 3.15pm.

Today was a “time out – do nothing day” so after doing some chores – debugging Ziggy’s face from the millions of insects we had gathered over a few months, we grabbed our chairs and sat on the dock, in the sun, doing nothing but talking and enjoying the fabulous day and eventually having a beverage or two. There is a little cafe at the end of the dock and boats were coming and going all day, mooring and enjoying the sunshine on its deck.

Floating café/restaurant 40 metres from Ziggy

Our Helsinki view from our overnight spot at the Zoo

Families parking and heading to the zoo and afterwards coming to the dock to feed the ducks and seagulls and fishermen trying their luck – didn’t see anything being caught.

A wonderful peaceful day and now batteries fully recharged (ours not Ziggy’s) looking forward to another new country with new customs, new food and drinks,new language and new adventures in Estonia from tomorrow – thankfully back to Euros again.

07/12/2017 Inari Finland

Wednesday 12th July – Inari, Finland

Set the alarm again for 6am to try to beat the traffic. A bright sunny day with just a few clouds about.

We had heard from a German couple at Nordkapp that the front gates and pay station are not manned between 1am and 8am and that if you arrive before 8am you can drive straight in – without payment. They also said that no one checks your vehicles during the day. We were not asked for tickets when we went in to see the film (worth seeing) nor did anyone come checking our dashboard for our ticket.

On the way down, about 5kms down, there is a parking spot which took quite a few motorhomes and this was full. We found several other spots within a 20-40 kms. No doubt these travellers were all aware of the “come in before 8am scenario”.

First part of the journey of about 100kms was backtracking from the day before and then onto new territory.

We again saw Santa’s reindeer happily grazing in the hills and again on and close to the road. They did not appear to be scared of people and cars but I guess that would have to be a requirement of Santa to become one of his team. Hope to visit Santa at Santa Village in Finland over the next few days to put in orders and a letter for Setinne and Eli for Xmas.

Passed through the border into Finland without any hold up at all. Straight through – no one to be seen anywhere.

Countryside in the north was a little disappointing. We have been terribly spoiled for the last month in particular in Lofoten Islands and Nordkapp.

Roads are much wider than Norway making travelling longer distances much easier. Very marshy and muddy and after stopping at the border at an information board, where we were ravaged by mosquitos and marsh flies, decided not to stop anywhere some time soon until the terrain got a little drier.

We travelled around 375kms today so called it a day at around 3pm. The camping spot we found just outside Inari, was the best by far that we had seen, and no mosquitos.

Thursday 13th July – Santa’s Village, Rovaniemi, Finland

After two very long days, a well deserved sleep in was needed and we surfaced around 9.30 am and slowly headed off.

The countryside changed back to the most beautiful Xmas trees lined along the road forever. Though driving through light rain most of the time, we made good time. Found a Lidl and felt like I had found a long lost and much loved friend. Hadn’t realised how expensive Norway was until we checked out the prices here. Tomatoes were $6+ in Norway but in Lidl in Finland around $1.50 per kilo. Only disappointment was that Lidl in Finland is not permitted to sell wine or spirits but had beer. Alko is the only store that is licensed to sell wine and spirits. Again much cheaper than Norway.

Again saw reindeer ambling on and near the roadside. They seem to have no fear of cars.

Arrived in Santa’s Village just after 5pm. They provide free camping for motorhomes here. Most things except some of the restaurants were closed so after a quick walk around to check out the lie of the land, headed back. The car park is full of motorhomes so expect tomorrow morning will be busy.

Friday 14th July – Posio, Finland

The village is very unusual and seems a bit disjointed. There is no entry cost in the village itself but 2kms down the road Santa Park costs around €17.50 per person entry but for this you do get some rides etc.

Not exactly oozing with Christmas spirit

The village is still under construction with lots not yet completed and what is there is mostly souvenir shops and restaurants and other shops that really have nothing to do with Santa. It does however have the official North Pole Post Office for Santa in Finland and this is where we happily paid €7.50 to have a personalised letter and postcard from Santa sent to our grandkids Setinne and Eli scheduled to arrive for Xmas.

Next we visited Santa in his house and sat with him for about 2 minutes and had photos taken. Have to say he was the best Santa we have ever met and he speaks so many languages it is incredible. Had a really enjoyable couple of minutes with him and then the elves led us back to front office where we could purchase photos A4 or 5 postcard size photos for €30 or a digital pack which includes all the photos plus the 2 minute video that you can download from the web for €40. Ouch but given that we wanted to send these to our kids by email we went the digital option. Only issue we have is that the photos are 11 mbs each so need some good internet to download them – not sure where we are going to find some! Not sure about size of video?

Next we thought we would leave Santa’s Village and head to Santa Park to take some more photos of the snow cave with ice princess and elves but it began to bucket down with rain (surprise, surprise) so decided to move on.

It rained the whole of today making travel slow but the roads are excellent with very few towns along the way. This part of Finland – Lapland hosts only a very small part of the population so traffic is light. Very few motorhomes seem to be in this part of the country and there are also very few places provided to camp along the way.

Another long day on the road. Finally we found a rare camping spot set amongst beautiful pine trees and leading onto a large lake about 13 klm south of Posio. Not a person in sight and nothing but nature around us (and the rain).

Had a fantastic and restful sleep (night before was extremely noisy with cars coming and going all night at Santa!s Village).

Saturday 15th July – Suomussalmi, Finland

Still finding it difficult to come to grips with the differences between the two countries. Norway is brimming with motorhomes and tourists everywhere and the scenery is just magic. Finland is quiet with very little traffic and tourists and the scenery so different with mostly lakes and trees and trees and trees and more trees.

We woke up to a bit of sunshine – lasted about an hour and then the drizzle started again. Everyone we have met cannot believe how wet the summer has been not just here but in most of Central Europe.

Broke up our trip today by visiting some of the small towns along the way. We have not had a fine day in Finland so really missing having some exercise. A little walking in drizzle has been the extent of it – not sure how long it has been since the bikes came off the bike rack but really itching to hit the road and get some of those muscles moving again.

We have again found a magic spot just outside of Suomussalmi . It is right on a lake with beautiful parkland all round. When we arrived, we discovered that this venue was hosting a free rock concert for the afternoon so we watched the cars pile in and then heard the bands start up just over the hill. If you can’t beat them – join them, I say, so we put on our rain jackets and armed also with an umbrella, joined the small but wet crowds and listened to the bands.

Left after about an hour and walked into town. The concert was still going strong when we got back but the security guards assured us they were finishing at 7pm.

It is now peaceful and quiet at 9pm. The sun has come out again for the second time today and there is blue sky everywhere. Still can’t get used to full sunshine and light for 24 hours – think we are really looking forward to a little darkness for part of the day.

Sunday 16th July – Nurmes, Finland

Woke up to one of those absolutely perfect days. Full sun, blue skies and not a cloud in sight and temp being a cool 16 degrees.

Straight after breakfast, took the bikes off the racks and headed to the bike trail only a few metres away. The path took us through the forest along gravel paths which was a little hard going, particularly up hill. I took the easy way out and used my power pack to get up the hills but Rob used his man power only. Stopped to take some unbelievable camera shots of lakes we passed by. So serene with no breeze at all, the lakes mirrored the tall trees and blue skies and colourful rock faces. Came back the same way and then biked into town.

So good to be able to exercise again and thoroughly enjoyed the hour or so before heading off again.

Decided to make today a small drive and take advantage of the beautiful day at the other end so drove to Nurmes and again found a great spot on a quiet little marina just outside if town.

Our overnight spot at Nurmes – watching swimming – Finnish style

Straight onto the bikes again and headed around the lake and then to town. Uphill all the way to town, but a good even track so decided to give the power pack a miss and push the muscles. Very quiet in town as most places are closed on Sunday. A joy coming back as it was pretty much downhill all the way.

The marina was very busy with cars coming and going all afternoon. Fishing boats and pleasure craft out enjoying this rare day. There was a small park and beach on the other side of the marina and families were enjoying picnics and some (very brave) people were actually swimming.

Took advantage of the sunlight and did some much needed washing as Rob gave Ziggy a much needed wash down. All chores done and dusted, settled down to a couple of drinks and watched the sun go over the hill and listened to some music before bed (still light all night).

The First 100 Days

Aussie European Tour – The First 100 days

1 Some interesting Stats for us

1 No of days we had “cabin fever” 0/100

2 No of days we wanted to go home 0/100

3 No of days we argued 0/100

4 No of days we have been quiet with each other 0/100

5 No of days we have loved the trip 100/100

6 No of days we have loved each other a little more 100/100

7 No of days we have missed our kids and grand kids 100/100

8 How much money have we spent Not sure

9 How many times have we taken the wrong turn Not sure

10 How far have we driven Not sure

2 Countries Visited in the first 100 days

England

Wales

France

Belgium

Luxembourg

Germany

Poland

Slovakia

Denmark

3 What has seemed to work for us

1 Buying our motorhome with the assistance of Mike Steers from UKMotorhomefinder otherwise it certainly would have been a lot harder to try to do it on our own from Australia.

2 Buying an A class LHD vehicle – an A class means it is a little wider (to accommodate the permanently made up double bed) but it is therefore roomier inside and a LHD vehicle makes it a lot easier to drive in Continental Europe where we will be spending most of our time, but more difficult to drive in the UK.

3 Paying for the motorhome using XE.com and not our bank (saved in excess of 4% of the purchase price)

4 Having the right accessories such as:-

2 solar panels,

2 leisure batteries,

Solar controller which charges both leisure batteries plus the starter battery

2 x 11kg Autogas tanks with auto cut over switch,

Large 2 door 150 litre fridge/freezer (AES) which switches over automatically to the best power source – 240V, gas or 12 volt.

The above accessories allowed us to wild camp for extended periods of time without having to worry about connecting to electricity or fill up little gas bottles on a regular basis.

5 Our biggest concern with wild camping was getting access to fresh water and emptying our cassette toilet, however we became very creative when it came to extending the time between dump stations for the cassette toilet (without breaking the law of course). Same with water – some countries make it more difficult than others to find water – so need to be creative – churches, cemeteries, town parks, advice from tourist offices etc.

6 Buying “High Tech” clothing, towels etc before leaving Australia such as :-

Sea to Summit Tek Microfibre Bath Towels, Face Washers and Tea Towels – these Microfibre products are so good they are almost dry before you have finished using them.

Columbia Hi Tech convertible long/short pants – also quick drying

Thermal long sleeved undershirts from Katmandu

7 Not having a rigid or fixed trip plan – we knew we had to pick up Ziggy from where Mike and Anne had put her in storage in Staffordshire and then drive to see Phil and Kay Davies in Wales (Ziggy’s previous owners) and then be in Biala Podlaska in Poland prior to Easter for the Easter celebrations with Barbara, Piotr and Kornelia Chilzuk (Krys’ relations) and to finalise Krys’ applications for Polish citizenship and passport.

Apart from that we just wanted to head up through Scandinavia to NordKapp in Norway, back down through Finland and central Europe in time to head back to the UK to reregister Ziggy – this reregistration has to be done in the UK – it cannot be done from Europe.

8 Organising a Commonwealth Bank Travel Money Cash Card (1 for each of us) with pre-loaded currencies (10 currencies available).

9 Organising a Bankwest zero fee, zero foreign currency conversion credit card (1 for each of us)

10 Organising a 28 Degrees zero fee, zero foreign currency conversion credit card (1 for each of us).

11 Buying a new Telstra Phone contract in Australia before leaving which gives us unlimited phone time from Australia to Europe, from Europe to Australia and within Europe.

No matter how well you think you have planned you still need to make many lengthy phone calls regarding parking, tolls, infringement notices, insurance, breakdown recovery etc and this has paid off for us already – not to mention phoning home to family and friends.

12 As well as bringing paper docs with us regarding all our passport info, Ziggy purchase contract, insurance, health insurance, health statement from our doctor, liquidity statement from our Tax Accountant and SMSF and Tax info we emailed all the info to our email addresses which are resident on the phones, Ipads and laptop so we have that extra level of backup.

We also have many Apps with their associated data to assist us with locating Parking and Camping Spots and general country touring information and some of them are quite hungry on storage.

We use NKC Parkings, Camperstop, CC Camping Card ACSI, ViaMichelin and Lonely Planet and some of these Apps require up to almost 4GB each if all the maps and photos are loaded so quite a bit of storage is required

13 We bought 2 x electric bikes in the UK prior to crossing the channel which have proven to be a great asset. They provide exercise – we tend to use them without the batteries turned on although most times we have used them so far the territory has been fairly flat. We bought the smaller wheeled folding versions which are easy to store on the Fiamma rack on the rear of Ziggy. We can park a few klms from city centres and cycle in and or go shopping at local supermarkets etc.

14 Breakdown Insurance – I tried to get cover from the German company ADAC prior to leaving Australia but they did not return my emails so I tried phoning but somehow it seemed as though as soon as my 07 calling code was detected I was blocked out so I waited until in Europe and then phoned locally and asked in my best German to speak to an English speaking operator, if one was available. The operator was most helpful and I have been able to take out compete coverage for Europe for 2 years, at a lot less than my Australian coverage costs

3 What we could have done better

1 We should have purchased a MIFI Dongle before we left the UK instead of sourcing it when in Europe.

We ended up sourcing the Dongle from Adam and Sophie at MotorhomeWifi in the UK and had in sent by courier for us to collect in Biala Podlaska – Adam and Sophie were great to deal with.

2 We should have purchased multi country SIM cards before we left the UK.

Trying to find SIM cards in different countries is a nightmare – there are different carriers with different plans and then trying to communicate with staff in another language can be a challenge apart from knowing where to locate the shops in the first place.

By far the best SIM card we bought in Europe was when we were assisted by our Dutch friends Robert and Marie-Louise de Reuver in Skierniewice, Poland (who now live in Poland and speak fluent Polish).

They translated and organised a 10GB card for us for around $8AUD. This card would work only in Poland and would last for only 1 month – which suited our requirements nicely.

About a week before the Polish SIM card was due to run out I contacted Three.Co.UK in the UK to order a SIM card and have it couriered to Biala Podlaska – they refused and said they would only send their “Internet with Legs“ cards to customers in the UK.

The “Internet with Legs” cards can be used in approx. 42 countries, inc Australia.

I then ordered the same card online through Amazon and had it couriered to Biala Podlaska – so what are Three.Co.UK on about???.

Each card can only be used for 2 months (apparently) – I only bought one card – in hindsight I should have ordered several – from memory I think they were around 25GBP for 10GB cards.

The Dongle and the SIM card were both waiting for us upon arrival in Biala Podlaska.

3 We should have bought paper maps of each country we planned visiting before we left the UK – the problem with buying maps once in Europe is they will be in the language of the country you are in and most definitely not English.

The Collins “Europe Essential Road Atlas” we purchased online in Australia does not have nearly enough detail, particularly in Scandinavia.

4 We should have organised travel money cash cards to cover the currencies not covered by the Commonwealth Bank Travel Cash Card – this card provides currency conversion to Euros and 9 other currencies but doesn’t cover the Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden, Denmark) and Poland so we need to be careful not to double convert as there is a large loss then in real value.

Norway, Sweden and Denmark use the Kroner as their currencies but each Kroner can only be used in its home country and has differing values and Poland uses the Zloty.

5 We brought too many electronic gadgets with us and each device seems to have its own unique charging plug and cable thus creating the potential for a spaghetti junction.

The reason for so many devices is that I believed we would be broken into and we made sure we split up the locations where we hid the devices in Ziggy to make it harder for would be robbers and also I guess because of my IT background and making sure that we had sufficient backups of data, pictures, videos etc.

Our inventory included the following:

2 x Apple Ipads,

3 x IPhones, – 1 an older one which was to be left visible on the dinette table (for robbers)

1 x HP 2-in-one Laptop with solid state drive (to absorb all the bumps),

2 x Kindles,

1 x 2GB Media Player,

1 x 2GB Data Back-up drive,

1 x GoPro Camera

2 x Lithium Battery Banks (for recharging devices when not in Ziggy)

1 x Targus Multi Port Adapter

1 x Multi Card Reader

1 x External DVD Drive

6 Bike rack cover – we started out with a Fiamma Deluxe 4 bike cover which is made out of a thin PVC type material with a zipper as a fastener. It was totally inadequate and was blown apart before the end of the first 100 days (about 10000klms). It is fairly difficult to get it to fit over the bikes properly and has Velcro type joins which don’t seal properly, the zipper kept jamming and therefore it was difficult to keep the weather out. We will be buying another type we have seen on other motorhomes with an elasticised back part made out of sturdier material and hope this will work better (no zipper).

The second 100 days

Let’s hope we can get a few more things better in the next 100 days – everyday is a learning process.

07/09/2017 Storslett Norway

Sunday 9th July – Storslett, Norway

Weather: sunny – yeah!!!

Our Norwegian neighbours stayed up very late and were still chopping wood for their fire at 2am. We love sitting by a campfire at night but seems to be wasted having a fire in broad daylight.

After checking the weather forecast, because a bad weather & rain forecast was predicted for several days at Nordkapp starting Tuesday, we decided to finish our trekking around the islands and head to Nordkapp as quickly as possible.

Great day for travelling with clear blue skies so took advantage and did some happy snapping during the day. Reluctantly headed back to the E6. We were so spoiled yesterday with the best roads and no traffic and once again great scenery.

Nothing much to report today. Decided to go as far as Storslett today and fill up with LPG there as it was the second last place in Norway that you could fill up before going to Finland when heading north. Finland does not have any LPG stations at all so will have to get through Finland in 5 weeks maximum before going into Estonia. We have worked out we use about a litre a day (when we don’t need to run the heater at night and believe our tanks hold around 42 litres.

Arrived at LPG station – closed with a note advising relocation address. Travelled back 6 kms to new address – back blocks of an airport only to find the autogas station pumps did not work. This is so frustrating and would strongly suggest travellers phone ahead to check on supply. Being a Sunday of course no one was around to help out.

Decided to camp for the night just the other side of Storslett and come back to service station tomorrow.

Monday 10th July, Russenes, Norway

Weather: Patches of blue sky with no sign of rain.

Blew like crazy during the night – was strange to feel Ziggy at 3.7 tonne, rocking. Glad no one was watching as they may have thought the wrong thing (don’t come a knocking if the van’s a rocking). Solid as a rock is our Ziggy bus so there were no concerns.

First thing Monday morning we phoned the LPG Norge station in Alta to check if it was still operational as this was our last hope. Yep all good was the reply, so ditched the idea of going back to Storslett and happily headed off to Alta.

Scenery is again changing now that we are heading back to the high snow country. The stately beautiful green xmas trees have been replaced with spindly shrubs and the backdrop now looks like a lunar landscape. The mountains are snow capped and waterfalls cascade down close to the road. Streams filled with boulders become raging rapids from the melting snow.

We arrive at Alta and headed to the LPG station. The sign on the bowser says “out of order”!!! Would you believe it. I look at Rob’s face and can see the frustration. Calm, cool and collected, he heads to the office. A few minutes later he comes back with a huge smile on his face – the sign was put there to stop people from filling up and driving off. We filled up and after doing some last minute shopping headed out of town to Russenes which would leave us just over 100kms to Nordkapp.

Winter holiday homes are scattered all over the mountains and some perched directly over the mountain streams – close enough to drop a line in. Skidoos are parked ready and waiting for winter.

The local Norwegian natives (Sami’s) sell their wares including reindeer skins and antlers from roadside stalls. Some of their tepees look similar to those of the American Indians

The roads have been excellent but now are getting narrower as they skirt around the mountain sides. The tunnels are also becoming narrower and are a challenge.

About 10klms before Russenes we struck a real challenge of a tunnel – it was only 4.7 metres wide, unlit and had no centre line markings. Ziggy is 2.35 metres wide without the side wing mirrors (one on each side) so we assumed definitely one way. At the entrance to the tunnel we had a green light so thought that meant we could proceed without any traffic coming the other way, as is the case when we had struck road works in Norway – wrong – just after entering the tunnel we struck a car coming the other way – just as well it was a car and not one of the busses, trucks or another motorhome.

The magic as we rounded Posangerfjorden – spectacular – brilliant blue seas forever and fishing villages and sail boats in the harbour. Just unbelievably fantastic.

We rounded the corner and there in the middle of the highway stands an elk. Defiantly looking at us – unprepared to move for us – so we rewarded him with a photo and then moved around him.

The Elk seem to be much smarter than our kangaroos

We saw a few more elk on the hillside before we arrived at another spectacular spot called Vtre Svarttikka near Russenes. Only takes 8 motorhomes and again we were lucky enough to take prime position before the area filled up within an hour or so.

Have the iPod and speakers on playing some of our favourite music and enjoying the drinks we were lucky enough to get a few days previously.

Tuesday 11th July – Nordkapp (North Cape), Norway

Set the alarm for 6am – eager to get an early start and beat the traffic. There would be time, plenty of time for a leisurely breakfast at the top.

It had rained for most of the night and was very dull and cloudy. Checked the weather forecast which showed full sun for the day.

The road was fantastic and hugged the mountainside all the way up. We saw several herds of reindeer grazing on the mountain side and some right next to the road. Cruise ships could be seen heading along the fjord towards Nordkapp and soon we discovered they dropped off passengers to waiting buses to take the final climb to the top. We counted at least 15 empty buses at a small town along the way. Sure as eggs these would be travelling to the top sometime during the day – about 1000 people all hitting the toilets at the same time – best to go before the busses arrive.

We were rewarded for our early start and only passed one bus and one truck coming the other way. The day was still cloudy and as we looked up towards Nordkapp, clouds obscured the top – no doubt there would be no view from up there.

10kms from the top we hit fog and crawled along at a snails pace – couldn’t see 10ft in front of us. The fee to park was 270 NOK per person for a 24 hour stay. For us 540NOK or around $85 AUD and it was looking very much like we wouldn’t see anything but fog.

The carpark was very full with motorhomes and caravans still there from the night before- yesterday was a perfect day up here, so we were told. We were lucky enough to get a front row position as a motorhome pulled out just as we arrived – only view was fog.

After breakfast we decided to explore the Nordkapp Centre (nothing else to do) and magically as we headed towards the Centre, the fog lifted a little and we had a short burst of sunshine and visibility. So quickly took happy snaps and then ventured into the Centre. Overnight entry includes a film in their cinema, a museum, souvenir shop and lots of places to eat. Half an hour later we exited the Centre and again the mountain was shrouded in fog.

Sad, sad, sad – the fog remained all day and despondent people who missed the earlier opportunity we had, sat in their vehicles praying for something. Loads of buses came and went all day. We counted at least 17 buses at one stage – all these people now eating and drinking and buying very expensive souvenirs (nothing else to do).

Motorhomes around us slowly disappeared back down the mountain and not many replaced them.

Resigned to the fact, that we had our 30 minutes and that was all we would get, we sat and read and listened to the howling wind outside and felt Ziggy being buffeted about. We watched people trying to walk along the headland with full winter gear on, being beaten about by the strong winds.

Decided to go back to the Centre and revisit the souvenir shop for a bargain (no such thing). Fog was so bad couldn’t see the building at all.

Quick, quick Rob said as he pulled me out of the souvenir shop – the sun is shining and we can get some more shots. It was after 5pm and for the first time today, there was not a cloud in the sky, no fog anywhere, and the sun was shining.

People appeared from everywhere (mostly from the Centre) and clambered for priority shots next to, beside, on or on top of, the Arctic Globe. The Centre itself is an iconic building and the views from all three sides of the headland were much more than spectacular.

Yes it was cold – we had on thermal undershirts, long sleeve thick shirts. jumper and parka

The most northerly part of Europe – we went to South Cape, Tasmania in our caravan in December 2016

We had dinner and our special drinks saved just for this occasion (a strong black Polish beer, a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand and a bottle of 65% proof Vodka courtesy of Piotr and Barbara and then sat in the front seat of Ziggy and watched the midnight sun slowly head towards the horizon. Took some happy shots just before midnight with setting sun in the background and an iPad showing the time to prove it. We had ticked off another special item on our bucket list and finding the cold outside too much now decided to hit the hay.

It is like the United Nations up here – motorhomes with registration plates from all over Europe – everyone with the common goal of seeing the midnight sun, having a nice meal, something to drink and enjoying each other’s company – why can’t it be like this all the time – the world over.

The midnight sun setting and rising at NordKapp

07/04/2017 Svolvaer – Lofoten Islands Norway

Tuesday 4th July – Svolvaer, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Weather: Small patches of blue sky so painted a smilie face on Ziggy, hit the accelerator and we were off!!

Decided to catch the ferry from Skutvik to Svolvaer – a two and a bit hour trip and half the price (Bodo to Lofoten was around $350 for our size motorhome).

A tight squeeze with only inches to spare between all vehicles front, back and sides – was sure we would lose our mirrors it was so close. Squeezed out of the drivers side door and went up the three levels to the top deck. A very calm but cold day on the water but no rain which made the trip very enjoyable – though had to cuddle a lot to keep warm when on the deck. Not much interesting to see as we crossed Vestfjordan until we reached Skrova Island.

Went through a channel that was not much wider than the ferry and passed by a lighthouse that you could almost reach out and touch as we sailed by. The village on Skrova was as pretty as a picture with homes spread along the hillsides and down to the waters edge – not much more than a little fishing village but really just wonderful.

A little while later we arrived at Svolvaer, a bustling town so different to Skrova.

Headed straight out of town to find a camp spot for the night a few kms away. Stayed at Austnestfjorden Rastplass, a popular tourist stop, which has a timber deck built leading to views of the fjord and mountains on one side and another set of 30 or so timber steps leading to another viewing platform on the other side. Buses, cars and motorhomes came and went until around 6 pm and it was pretty quiet after that.

We were very lucky as the rain had held off for most of the day but as we settled in to sleep, it rained pretty much most of the night.

Wednesday 5th July – Leknes, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Weather: patches of blue sky with heavy cloud.

Decided to head to the most southern tip of Lofoten over the next few days so took the E10 and headed south to our first stop at Borg. Everybody along the way has raved about the scenery in Lofoten and from what we saw yesterday and today – absolutely true. So fantastically beautiful and with a little bit of sunshine occasionally, it was more than spectacular. The colours were just amazing.

We visited the Lofotor Viking Museum along with coach loads of tourists, cars and motorhomes filling the enormous car park to capacity. Peak season has only just started here and six out of every ten passenger cars are motorhomes and caravans. We had hoped as we headed further north, the traffic would slow down – not so. It appears most are Norwegian plates and more seem to be heading south – thank goodness.

The Museum is a must to see as it covers acres and acres of land and has so much to offer in the all inclusive price. Firstly the main building is the history museum with artefacts from the Viking era plus a great little film. Then a short walk to a reconstructed Chieftains house which is massive (the largest in Europe we believe) and covers three large rooms with artefacts, decorations , crafts and Viking era costumed villagers ready to answer any questions you may have. Next a twenty minute walk to the harbour where they have an authenticated reconstruction of a Viking ship which takes tourists for a sail in the harbour. You can also try your skills at archery, axe throwing and horse riding for kids plus much more. This is really well done and thoroughly enjoyed the day.

Enough for one day so off to Leknes. Our spot is set high on a hill overlooking the town, mountains and sea. Takes around 20 motorhomes here and at 9pm we have only 8 so should be a very quiet night.

Thursday 6th July – Nusfjord, Lofoton Islands, Norway

Weather: Cloudy mostly.

Travelled to the southern tip of Lofoten to a little fishing village called “A”. Never dreamed there would be a place called A but here it is, a complete fishing village at roads end. Can’t go any further south.

The village is really unique with its rust red buildings or Rorbu which are houses the fishermen lived in while fishing for months in the summer months when cod came here to spawn. The fishing industry is the richest in Norway (though we could say given the number of tourists here now – tourism would run a clear second).

The village has its own fishing museum, a cod liver oil factory, bakery (the cinnamon rolls are to die for – the aroma from the freshly baked cinnamon rolls from the bake house was like the Pied Piper luring all near and far to taste its wares) and many other buildings. Spent a couple of hours there and is really worth a visit.

We then started back north with the view to going off the highway and explore every little road that runs off the E10. So many beautiful little fishing villages here and the scenery never ceases to amaze us. Truly wild, beautiful and captivating. Just as well this is the age of digital photography as we are taking so many shots and each really does not do this country justice.

Finally our last road to explore was to Nusfjord where the fishing village here is one of the oldest in Norway. It was so busy with coaches and people everywhere. We couldn’t find a park so headed out of town and are staying in a wild camp a couple of kms away right on the water with mountains all round. Might head in to visit early tomorrow when the crowds are not so huge.

Really can’t believe how busy it is here – can’t wait for the tourist season to finish so we don’t have to compete for everything.

Friday 7 July – Svolvaer, Lofoton Islands, Norway

Weather: blue skies – no rain

Headed back to Nusfjord fishing village in the morning and was lucky enough to take the last space in the motorhome parking area. Quite a bit smaller than A but just as unique. Some great walks in every direction – mostly up hill – where the views were spectacular again. In the village they had drying racks for the cod and the smell was indescribable. We actually went into the souvenir shop and had to leave as they were selling the dried cod in bags and the stench filled the room where there were clothes and other items for sale. Suggest it would take a long time for the smell to get out of the clothes.

Lots of boats in the little harbour each trying to offer fishing trips for the keen angler. We wanted a fishing trip as an option while in Norway but it is just too cold on land so think it may be way too cold out to sea.

Still in winter clothes, seems like there have been only a couple of days in the last four months where we have been able to wear shorts and short sleeves and then only for part of the day.

Next port of call was the Vestfjorden waterfront town of Henningsvaer. The side road off the highway was steep and windy and not much more again than one lane. So much traffic that we would have to stop at every 20 metres or so to move into a lay by to allow the traffic past. The scenery was well worth the drive, but any other month than July would be better. The road is shared by cyclists and walkers as well which adds to the frustration of getting to this town.

Henningsvaer is very touristy and has great waterfront cafes and shops. We took a walk for about an hour from the main car park right around the point where beautifully restored Norwegian homes took up places on the hillside along the waterfront.

Had planned to stay in this car park as it was advertised in Campings as a free motorhome camp but they have placed a restriction of a six hour limit now. Way too busy for us as we prefer quite places so headed out of town to find somewhere to sleep for the night.

Passed by quite a number of seaside villages with drying racks some still full of drying cod. Did not want to camp near any of these.

Stayed again at Svolvaer where we had stayed on Tuesday night – really busy here too and by 8pm there was no more spots available. Had a lovely Swedish couple camped next to us – only very young and slept in a little station wagon. Temperatures at night are in single figures now. Think we can remember back a long time ago to doing something similar but not in temperatures less than 10.

Saturday 8 July – Arstein, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Weather: very cloudy with the occasional small patch of blue.

We’ve had enough of the tourists already (we do not classify ourselves as tourists but long time travellers!) so decided to get off the main highway at the first opportunity and lay low until at least tomorrow afternoon.

Headed along the E10 until we got to Evenskjer and then peeled off on the 825. So pleased we did as the road was super quiet and except for a small patch of a couple of kms, was excellent. Ziggy hugged the mountain side most of the way with several smaller Fjord’s almost lapping up beside the roadway. Tranquil waters surrounded again by mountains, some snow topped.

Found a Vinmonopolet (bottle shop for wines and spirits) in Evenskjer and after checking with the bank manager, ventured in to check out the prices. We are down to about two nips of rum and one bottle of wine left now. The wine has been stored ready to consume and celebrate when we reach Nordkapp (North Cape). Beer can be purchased in all supermarkets (except on Sunday’s) but wines and spirits can only be purchased at a Vinmonopolet which is Government run and taxed at 25%.

Took out a mortgage and purchased a bottle of rum and 4 bottles of wine – thought it would be more expensive than what is was. Might celebrate tonight!!!

We have camped at Arstein on the Gratangsfjord with a half dozen other motorhomes – all from Norway. A tranquil setting with no buses pulling in here tonight – hurray!!!!

06/29/2017 Trofors Norway

Thursday 29th June – Wild camp spot 37 kms south of Trofors

Blue skies – nothing but blue skies. Not a cloud in the sky.

Travelled a long way today as there is nothing specific that we want to see.

Acre after acre, mile after mile of majestic forests with towering xmas trees on both sides of the road. Down the mountainside to the rivers, nothing but magnificent forests bordering waterways so calm they were reflecting these trees – so beautiful and then these waterways turned into raging rapids as we go downhill.

Absolutely no toll roads or ferries to catch today so a very good day.

Truly beautiful drive ending up with a campsite beside that illusive babbling brook that was just magic. Only one other motorhome shared this spot with us. A spot that we have dreamed off often but never being to find it in our travels in Australia. It was so hot (first time we had felt the heat) that we had to put the awning down and sit in the shade for the afternoon.

Recharged the batteries (ours not Ziggys) and enjoyed a peaceful afternoon wrapped up in a novel that have been too busy or tired to finish.

Friday 30th June – Polarsirkelsenteret – Artic Circle, Norway

Totally recharged and ready to enjoy the third day in a row of sunshine, we again decided to take a long drive heading towards Nord Kapp.

Roadworks everywhere today and to subsidise these, automatic tolls were in place. We can’t understand why these tolls have to be charged to travel along roads that are not yet completed and very difficult and hard to negotiate. Why not wait until the roads are completed and then charge for use of new roads? We struggled for nearly 100 kms and think we went through at least three tolls until we reached our final destination for today – the rim of the Arctic circle.

We left the valleys with raging mountain streams and rapids and forests and began again to climb back to the high mountains.

Sitting in front of the Arctic Circle centre surrounded again by snow capped mountains – “piebald” my driver said. Exactly what they looked like with mountains of white snow patches over a dark background of green and black.

Very touristy as bus loads of tourists arrived and departed. The Centre featured Norwegian Troll dolls at the front door and offered souvenirs for purchase and for the hungry tourist – a range of culinary delights.

We enjoyed use of wifi offered by the centre and took the opportunity for my editor to finish another blog or two to post to the web.

Very quiet once visitors left and the Centre closed for the evening at 10pm. Around 30 motorhomes camped there for the night.

Saturday 1st July – Saltstraumen, Norway

Overcast day though reasonably warm, we headed for Bodo and Saltstraumen.

More toll roads as we went over the Saltstraumen bridge.

Saltstraumen is a small town around 33 kms south of Bodo. At every high tide, the world’s largest maelstrom occurs and we wanted to be there to see it. We camped under the bridge, where although it states a fee of NOK 200 would be charged, we were told there was no charge when we went looking for a ticket machine. Big surprise as everywhere you go here, it costs money!

We arrived at 3.30 pm and high tide was 6.05pm – only had 2.5 hours to wait.

Sat under the bridge and waited with around 50+ other people.

The maelstrom occurs as two waterways meet each with two tides going in opposite directions. Best time suggested is high tide.

Having spent a great deal of time on the water with boats we have owned, we found this more than a little disappointing, though to those not in the same boat, so to speak, it may have been interesting. From our point of view, certainly not worth going to Bodo via Salstraumen unless the plan is to go over to Lofoten Islands by ferry.

Headed back to Ziggy and had a couple of stiff Vodkas to warm up before dinner.

Sunday 2nd July – Bodo, Norway

Weather: Totally miserable outside with very little chance of changing, though the long range weather forecast suggested it would fine up by Thursday.

We had intended to take the ferry to Lofoten Islands so decided to give it another day to clear up so headed for Bodo about 33 kms away. Dropped into the Tourist Centre in town and picked up some brochures about “must dos” in North Western Norway and then to find somewhere to camp for the night (so to speak) and read all about it.

Today, we went through at least four new toll roads that the sat nav did not pick up – ouch!!! Each time the minimum cost for us as we are over 3.5 ton is around $8 a time and I MEAN MINIMUM cost.

Headed up the hill to a place suggested by one of the blog sites we follow and after one more toll !! found the spot which had absolutely magnificent views across Vestfjordan on one side and the township of Bodo on the other. This was the starting point for a hike to Keiserstein – the Emperors Pass. There were two plateaus with the Lower being very busy as it was the starting point of some great hikes and the upper (where we camped) much quieter but better views.

We were joined by three other motorhomes during the afternoon and evening.

Around 11pm, there were patches of sun over the mountains way over in the distance, so took the opportunity to take a couple of photos and went to bed ever hopeful that tomorrow would be OK to travel on the ferry to Lofoten.

Coordinates for this site are 67.30118. 14.44281.

Monday 3rd July – Ulvsvag, Norway

Weather: worse than yesterday (if possible).

Put on the gum boots and parted the webbed feet and made an executive decision to bypass the ferry here and move further north until the weather cleared. Forecast now says rain until Thursday so will take the long way round by road to Lofoten which should take a couple of days (no ferry a saving of over $300-$400).

Another four tolls at least today – becoming a little tired of all the toll roads in Norway- there is absolutely no way around them unless you travel hundreds of miles to get around them. The government here really makes travellers pay a high price but the scenery is so unbelievably special – pay the price or don’t come, we think is the attitude.

Travelled again through high mountains with snow and rivers and forests – just so beautiful but the rain slowed us down a bit so stopped around 2pm for a well deserved rest.

Have seen the Xmas trees in the forests, the snow on the mountains – all that is left is to see Santa Claus at the North Pole with his turbo jetted reindeers. Have not sighted Rudolph and his friends as yet but have been told we will closer to Nord Kapp.

No where special tonight – just outside this little town in a quiet wild camp spot with at last count at 9pm – 6 other motorhomes.